How many dependents can be claimed on a W4?

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How many dependents can my husband claim on his W4? We are a household of 3, but can he claim more than 3, as long as we file our taxes correctly at tax time? We are trying to get more money monthly and less money back at tax time.

Smart thinking on trying to reduce your tax refund next year! Unless you’re just feeling incredibly patriotic or something, there’s really no good reason to give the government an interest free loan of your money.

Fortunately, the number of allowances one claims on a W2 does not have to equal the actual number of people in the household. In other words, your husband can claim more if he wants to. To get an idea on the correct number to claim, check out the IRS Withholding Calculator.

In truth, it’s a little involved but if you plug in the information it asks for, you’ll get a recommendation for how many allowances your husband should claim. Just be sure to recalculate it each year so that you don’t end up under-withholding in the future.